Impressed Carlo Ancelotti hailed his Real Madrid stars for weathering a Celtic storm before delivering a Champions League masterclass.
The legendary Italian ended his three-game winless run in Glasgow's east end as the defending European champions flexed their muscles after the break as Vinicius, Luka Modric and Eden Hazard netted . Celtic started like a runaway train and created a host of clear cut chances but Liel Abada, Daizen Maeda and Callum McGregor could not find the net.
And those near misses proved costly as Real Madrid rallied after the break to leave Ange Postecoglou's men with few answers to the attacking threat that came after star man Karim Benzema hobbled off. Ancelotti admits the first half was fraught with danger but loved the way his say showed their champion credentials. Speaking to BT Sport, he said: "Two games, first half, imbalanced, we suffered a little bit (with the) intensity, second half, we have more control and dangerous in the counter attack.
"We are not surprised, we knew they could start really fast with a lot of intensity, we were lucky because they hit the post, we were good with the ball. Also, in the first half, we didn't play so fast in the final third but second half much better, we needed to improve the speed in the final third, good combinations and three fantastic goals. When we opened the scoring, it was easier for us to control the ball, we played with quality in the midfield, Kroos had a fantastic game, good control, second half there was no problem."
And Ancelotti was full of praise for Celtic and their full-on style of play as his Thibaut Courtois was an inch away from seeing Callum McGregor score past him in the first half. And the legendary former Milan boss expects Leipzig and Shakhtar to struggle in Scotland.
He added: "I think so, this is a difficult stadium, fantastic atmosphere, they push a lot, the team, the supporters, it was nice for us to play well here, and to win."
